We round up the reviews for the play starring Tilda Swinton.
Broadway World: “Unwin’s direction has real verve even when it sags a little towards the middle; frankly, though, it could sag all the way to Sydney and still be barely noticeable when Swinton is in this kind of dominant mood. His updates to the text fit in smoothly but seem a tad plain next to Karge’s scattershot writing and its more exciting conceptual thrust. Christie springs surprise after surprise with her set: four white walls and the interior of a grim East German flat seem much less boring after the TV explodes, the paint flies and a storm of ping pong balls emerge from above.”
Theatre & Tonic: “Man to Man is not always an easy piece to penetrate, and its fragmentation can occasionally distance rather than illuminate. But perhaps neatness would be dishonest. This is a play about a person fractured by a fractured century.”
The Guardian: “The show at times resembles performance art – Swinton slept in a glass box as a living exhibit in a 1995 installation – but the performer’s verbal flexibility and perfect pacing make Man To Man compelling theatre. However incongruously at an historically radical venue, this truly is a red carpet event.”
The Independent: “The Scottish actor returns to the stage after decades away, reprising a role she originated back in 1988.”
Time Out: “Swinton has so much energy and presence, the sense she probably has a colossal amount to give and could become a theatre artist of real significance again if only she had any interest in doing that. There is, however, absolutely zero question: Tilda Swinton has still got it.”
London Theatre.co.uk: “For theatre nerds, this is particularly thrilling. For everyone else, the real boon is a rare opportunity to see Swinton on stage. Few actors have her remarkable ability to dissolve into her characters, leaving no trace of her previous incarnations. So it’s easy to forget you’re watching Swinton as she burps and swaggers around the stage as Ella-turned-Max.”
Theatre Weekly: “While today’s geopolitical climate perhaps places us closer to the world of the play than to the era in which it was written, Man to Man remains an astute and compelling piece of theatre. Times and attitudes may have changed, but Swinton’s performance feels every bit as powerful as its reputation suggests, making this revival a rare opportunity to witness a landmark production that still has plenty to say.”
WhatsOnStage: “Stephen Unwin’s direction of the 28 short scenes is clear and driving, and the text (translated by Anthony Vivis) a compelling mixture of the raw and the poetic. When Ella/Max thinks of her past life as a woman she sees herself in terms of Snow White, pale as snow. Swinton’s wistful delivery of those lines is just one of the inflections of a performance that captures the contradictions of a divided life, at once pitiful and revolting, admirable and disgusting.”
The Arts Desk: “Celebratory return of superstar Tilda Swinton in a terrific version of a contemporary German classic.”
All That Dazzles: “Man To Man made an impact last time it graced the Royal Court stage, and nothing has changed in the decades since. Well, much has changed in the world, but nothing has changed in the impact this production makes. Through incredible direction from Stephen Unwin and an out-of-this-world performance from Tilda Swinton, Man To Man is one of the more exciting plays I have had the pleasure of attending this year.”
Man to Man continues to play at the Royal Court Theatre until the 24th October.